War Machine well oiled for Group 2 Australia Stakes

MELBOURNE – Group 1-winning galloper War Machine will be seen in an early sprint feature when he lines up in the A$350,000 (S$301,000) Group 2 Australia Stakes (1,200m) at Pakenham on Jan 23.

Usually run at Moonee Valley, the 2026 edition of the weight-for-age feature will be run under the lights at Southside Pakenham as the Moonee Valley track is under reconstruction.

A five-year-old by Harry Angel, War Machine stamped himself as one of the top sprinters in Australia after landing his first Group 1 victory in the Stradbroke Handicap (1,400m) at Eagle Farm on June 14, 2025.

Trained by Ben, Will and J.D. Hayes of Lindsay Park, the New Zealand-bred resumed four months later at Flemington on Oct 4.

Even when carrying the top weight of 60kg, he stormed home with an equally impressive victory in the Group 2 Gilgai Stakes (1,200m).

The brilliance of those wins saw War Machine gain a slot in the Group 1 The Everest (1,200m) at Randwick on Oct 18.

The seven-time winner was sent out as third favourite to Hong Kong’s champion sprinter Ka Ying Rising, but finished down the track, before another unflattering run in the Russell Balding Stakes (1,300m) on a heavy track on Nov 1. He was then sent for a spell.

While his three trainers have been busy rebuilding their Euroa property damaged by the Longwood bushfires on Jan 9, they have also given War Machine two jump-outs since his last start.

War Machine won his latest 800m heat at Werribee on Jan 16 under a hold, and that gave the Hayes’ brothers confidence he has taken no ill-effects from his trip to Sydney in the Spring.

“He’s very good, and he’s on track to run in the Australia Stakes on Jan 23,” said J.D. Hayes.

“The Sydney trips didn’t quite go to plan. The thing we’re holding on to is how brilliant he was first time down the straight, off that Queensland freshen-up as well.

“We’re really happy with the order he’s presenting and trialling up in, and I thought at Werribee on Friday, he showed us he is ready to run a really good race first-up.”

An official rating of 114 has made War Machine trickier to place now, but Hayes said options are open, whether they are at weight-for-age conditions or not.

“We’ll sort of see how he goes in the Australia Stakes, and then we’re largely going to target him towards that traditional path through the autumn,” he said.

“Just with his rating, he’s got to stick to those weight-for-age classics, and we do think he’s probably going to be better suited getting slightly out in trip.”

Hayes said the Group 1 Futurity Stakes (1,400m) at Caulfield on Feb 21 could fit the bill. But the stable would also assess War Machine’s potential weight in the Group 1 Newmarket Handicap (1,200m) on March 7, given his explosive win down the Flemington straight in the Gilgai Stakes.

“It (the Newmarket) is certainly something that we will consider,” said Hayes.

“I don’t know what weight he’d get, but he has got a good track record down the straight.

“So it’s definitely something worth considering, but we’ll see how he goes on Friday and pick the races accordingly for him.” RACING AND SPORTS